Before he debuted for Australia, an 18-year-old Watson fine-tuned his seam bowling at the MRF Pace Foundation, joining the setup in Chennai under the tutelage of Lillee, who guest-starred on the podcast’s latest episode.

“As well as just mimicking you in the backyard,” Watson said, “I had been crazily fortunate for you being my bowling mentor really since I was the age of 18. I was lucky, thanks to Basil Sellers for providing me with an opportunity for two weeks at the MRF pace academy in Chennai, which had a huge impact on my career. I spent two weeks just eating, breathing cricket, just bowling in particular.”

“I remember the mornings were fitness work and the afternoons were just cricket heaven,” Watson said, “Just bowling with you, at the top of my mark, just working through various technical components, and then also had the opportunity to bat against the bowlers, so I was working on that with your input into certain aspects of my batting as well. I remember it like it was yesterday.

“The impact that it had – and it wasn’t just at training, but the impact that you had off the field, off the training park, we had a few drinks one night, and the knowledge and the belief you had in me even at that age. Gosh! I felt bullet-proof and ten-foot-tall because of that.”